Abstract
This field note examines the integration of arts-based pedagogy into a transdisciplinary graduate course that brings together students from public health, medicine, the social sciences, humanities, education, technology, and the arts. Central to the course is the Show and Tell assignment, in which students select and present a work of art connected to a social movement. Over three years and 42 student submissions, this assignment has served as an accessible entry point for exploring how artistic expression shapes activism, fosters community, and deepens understanding of justice-oriented work. Through an inductive content analysis of student-selected artworks and presentations, five major thematic areas emerged: racial justice and belonging, health and healing, protest and activism, historical reflection, and environmental sustainability.
Findings illustrate how the arts invite vulnerability, empathy, and multidimensional learning, enabling students to connect personal identity, academic training, and social change practice. The assignment not only strengthened students’ capacity for critical reflection and emotional literacy but also functioned as a community-building mechanism within an online course setting. These field notes highlight the pedagogical value of integrating creative practices into graduate education and demonstrate how arts-based approaches can humanize learning, encourage cross-disciplinary dialogue, and cultivate the empathy and imagination essential for community organizing and public health practice.
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 License.
Recommended Citation
Hemingway, Bree L. and Hawkins, Margaret
(2026)
"Show and Tell: Integrating the Arts into Transdisciplinary Public Health and Community Organizing Education,"
The Transdisciplinary STEAM+ Journal:
Vol. 6:
Iss.
1, Article 18.
Available at:
https://scholarship.claremont.edu/steam/vol6/iss1/18
Included in
Adult and Continuing Education Commons, Art Education Commons, Community Health and Preventive Medicine Commons, Curriculum and Instruction Commons, Curriculum and Social Inquiry Commons, Public Health Education and Promotion Commons, Scholarship of Teaching and Learning Commons
Author/Artist Bio
Bree Hemingway, PhD, MPH, CHES, is an Assistant Professor of Practice in the School of Community and Global Health at Claremont Graduate University. Her work focuses on arts-integrated pedagogy, community organizing, and public health education. Maggie Hawkins, MPH, is a Graduate Teaching Assistant and public health practitioner whose work centers on community engagement, creative pedagogy, and equity-focused practice. Together, they teach TNDY 408v Community Organizing for Social Change and collaborate on arts-based approaches to transdisciplinary education.